


Your Lover, She Sleeps in Increments

by wlwAquaman



Category: The Penumbra Podcast
Genre: F/F, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Post-S2 Finale, Sharing a Bed, and also I want the three most powerful women in the citadel to be girlfriends, referenced paranoia and fatigue due to trauma, sir caroline and quanyii are together, sometimes you need soft miraline content and you gotta do it yourself, they're in an open relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-17
Updated: 2019-07-17
Packaged: 2020-06-30 08:51:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,076
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19849738
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wlwAquaman/pseuds/wlwAquaman
Summary: "No news, my queen," she replied. "I merely wish for permission to speak freely with you, if I may."“Whether or not I give permission hardly seems to stop you from speaking your mind.”





	Your Lover, She Sleeps in Increments

It had been weeks since she had slept properly. Even after the monsters' weapon had been destroyed, after the fires had died down, Mira still had trouble falling asleep. She kept thinking of the monsters she had seen in the shadows-- the glint of a tooth, the snag of a claw on the drapes. She shivered, but knew in her heart that the threat was gone. Still, she rarely slept for more than twenty minutes at a time. The slightest sounds put her on edge, and it seemed that her body was constantly on high alert.

Mira absentmindedly fingered the hem of her headscarf, hand resting on her chest. The sweet, warm air of the late spring evening wafted through her open window. She thought of all the letters she had written to her knight. Well, Commander of the Guard now. Sir Caroline, the prickly woman from the Northern Frosts. Mira was glad that most of them had never been sent. In her sleep-deprived delirium, most of the letters she had written to Sir Caroline had been largely nonsensical and wholly embarrassing. Sir Caroline would have no doubt used their contents to tease Mira and undermine her authority.

A sharp rap on the door made Mira involuntarily tense up, rousing her from her thoughts. "You may enter," she said, her voice a bit shakier than she had intended. The door swung open gently and Sir Caroline walked in. She was not wearing her plate armor, but still sported the cloth uniform of the guard. Her sword hung loosely at her side. "Your majesty," she said to Mira. There was no hint of her usual teasing tone in her voice as she bowed. "What news have you, Sir Caroline?" Mira questioned, turning to the knight. "No news, my queen," the woman replied. "I merely wish for permission to speak freely with you, if I may.”

“Whether or not I give permission hardly seems to stop you from speaking your mind.” Sir Caroline gave a chuckle, stepping closer to where Mira sat at her desk. “That is true, your majesty. Very well. To put it bluntly, I am worried about you. You haven’t slept for weeks, even after the monsters’ weapon was dealt with. I can tell it’s taking a toll on you, my queen.”

Mira laughed quietly, bitterly. “It’s that obvious, is it? And here I was, thinking that I was putting on a confident face for the people.” She looked up at Sir Caroline, her eyes weary. “It is so hard, Caroline,” she said quietly, “to be brave all the time. I do not have the luxury of showing a shred of weakness, to look anything less than confident. I love my people, but it is so, so hard.”

“My queen…. Mira,” Sir Caroline said softly, kneeling by her chair. “It is impossible to be brave all of the time. I have seen many things in my life that have scared me so deeply that I still see them when I close my eyes, still have nightmares about them.” She took Mira’s hand in hers, her strong, calloused hands gently clasped around Mira’s. “But I know you, Mira, and it is alright to not be brave sometimes. What is important is that you don’t cut yourself off from those who want to help you.”

Mira looked at Sir Caroline. She saw her earnest brown eyes looking up into her own, felt her hands clasped around hers. She had never seen this kind of tenderness from the knight, a woman whose verbal bite and natural prickliness was her defense in the Citadel against those in the guard who would otherwise try to undermine her authority. “Caroline,” she said softly, “may I kiss you?” Sir Caroline looked at her for a moment, before she smiled, the scar on her lip curving upwards. “Of course, Mira.”

Mira’s hand cupped Caroline’s cheek as she bent down, her lips meeting hers as they kissed gently. Caroline’s hands still held Mira’s. Their kiss was tender, almost chaste, and Mira felt safe in Caroline’s embrace. “Will you stay with me?” Mira asked as she broke away from the kiss. “I could not fathom leaving you alone tonight, Mira,” Caroline replied as she stood up, not letting go of Mira’s hand as she led her gently to the bed. “May I?” questioned Sir Caroline, gesturing to the nightgown folded neatly on the covers. Mira paused for a second. It wasn’t that she wasn’t used to being dressed by others (her maidservant often assisted her), but the fact that it was _Caroline._ She nodded, and the woman gently undid the clasps on her dress, unwrapped the scarf from around her head, and helped her slip into her nightclothes.

As Caroline finished tying the front of her nightgown, Mira gently clasped her hands between her own. “Thank you, Caroline,” she said, looking up at her. “Truly.” Caroline smiled again, and leaned in and gave her another kiss. “Of course,” she replied, gently helping Mira into her bed. “Aren’t you staying?” asked Mira, as Caroline began to walk away. “Yes,” she replied. “I will stay in the room and protect my queen.” 

“I think you could protect her much better from the bed,” Mira teased, lifting up the covers. Caroline hesitated. “Are you sure that’s all right? To share your bed with me?” Mira smiled softly. “Caroline, to be with you in any way is more than all right. I won’t make you do it, but it would be very nice to have you with me.”

“Then as her majesty desires, I will do” Caroline joked, giving a dramatic bow before kicking off her boots and climbing into the bed. Mira laughed, moving into Caroline’s arms as they lay down together. “I really would do anything for you, Mira,” Caroline murmured into her hair. “Not just because you’re my queen, but because I care for you. I have since the moment I met you, at my accolade.”

“And I, you,” replied Mira sleepily. “I can understand why your lady Quanyii loves you so. You are much kinder and caring than you would like to admit.” She paused for a second, thinking. “I shall like to meet her someday. The first woman to truly capture Sir Caroline’s heart must be a remarkable person.” Caroline smiled. “She is,” she said, pulling Mira closer. “And you are the second.”

That night was the first in months that Mira slept soundly.

**Author's Note:**

> Mira is the little spoon
> 
> (Title from "Tri-State Kids" by Answering Machine)


End file.
